


Mr. Carlos

by Amethystina



Category: The Losers (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Carlos flirts like hell though, Jake is bashful and adorable, Jake's niece and Carlos' nephews are enrolled at the same preschool, M/M, Only Jake thinks they're Carlos' sons, So he tries not to flirt with him, fluff and cuteness, mild misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-16
Updated: 2015-12-16
Packaged: 2018-05-07 01:52:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5439107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amethystina/pseuds/Amethystina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jake loves picking Beth up from her preschool since it gives him an opportunity to spend more time with his awesome niece. Things get a bit complicated when he finds himself attracted to one of the dads, though. That in itself isn't a problem — the man is gorgeous and polite and so incredibly kind — but Jake is also pretty sure that Mr. Alvarez is spoken for.</p><p>Jake has never really understood how difficult it is <em>not</em> to flirt with someone, especially when all he wants to do it kiss Mr. Alvarez silly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mr. Carlos

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea why I wrote this. I think I just wanted to know what would happen if JJ’s niece and Cougar’s nephews (that I give him from time to time) happened to be enrolled at the same preschool. So this is that. It's really just sweet and adorable the entire way through, sprinkled with some misunderstandings that are solved without too much drama. Because that's how I roll.
> 
> I hope you like it, despite how simple it is! 
> 
> This is probably one of my lamest titles on a fic to this date...

 

Jake was pretty certain that he was looking at the most gorgeous man he had ever seen. Which he was tempted to consider a good thing, if it hadn't been for a couple of complications.

Complication number one was that they were at Beth's preschool, which seemed like a rather bad place to attempt a hook-up. Complication number two — or technically two _and_ three, depending on how you looked at it — were the twin boys clinging to said man.

Not that Jake had a problem with kids. God no — he worshipped the very ground Beth walked on and had attempted to adopt several of her classmates on more than one occasion — but people with kids were usually in a relationship. Jake was many things, some of them less flattering than others, but he would have to sink a lot lower than he was comfortable with to try and steal someone else's significant other.

But at least there was no harm in him looking, right?

The two mom's standing a couple of feet away certainly were, and they weren't even being subtle about it. Jake couldn't quite hear what they were saying, talking in hushed whispers as they were, but the looks on their faces said it all.

Not that he could blame them. If Jake had been a bored housewife this was the kind of man he would want to have an affair with. Judging by the man's smooth, confident grace and that damn near irresistible face of his a tumble in the sack would be well worth it — probably something close to a religious experience, even.

The cowboy hat alone gave Jake several ideas that he shouldn't be considering while standing in a room full of preschoolers.

None of this was made any easier when the man in question looked up from the two boys — who were talking over each other in a rapid mix of English and Spanish — and _smiled_. Jake felt his gut clench from not-so-innocent yearnings, and breathing was suddenly a bit more difficult than it had been mere seconds ago.

Holy _shit_.

Jake wanted to do unspeakable things to this man — or have them done to him. He really wasn't picky.

Jake had to swallow when that smile was turned towards him, accompanied by a hint of curiosity.

"You're new," the man said as he took a step closer.

It wasn't a question, exactly, but Jake nodded all the same. He couldn't for the life of him understand why this man would want to start a conversation with _him_ when there were two very willing mom's just a couple of feet away.

"Uh... y-yeah," Jake squeaked unattractively, hastily clearing his throat and nodding towards the pile of kids saying goodbye to their teacher. "I'm here to pick up—"

"Uncle Jake!"

Never let it be said that Beth didn't have perfect timing, even at the tender age of four.

She came barreling into his legs and Jake actually welcomed the distraction she offered. It meant that he could look away from the very handsome dad and try to get his urge to blush under control.

"Hiya, sweetheart!" he cooed, hoisting her up in the air and making her squeal from delight. Jake grinned as he settled her on his hip — a grin that only widened when Beth leaned close and pressed a wet, smacking kiss on his cheek. "Did you have fun today?" he asked.

"Uh-huh!" Beth nodded happily, one of her tiny little hands reaching out to tug at his beard. Jake still wasn't quite sure why she did that — she seemed barely aware of it herself — but he didn't have the heart to make her stop. Besides, it was better than those three months when she tried to steal his glasses whenever he came close enough for her to reach them.

When Jake looked back at the Very Handsome Dad he was surprised to find that he still had the man's attention. He was smiling, in fact, in a way that made Jake's heart do an excited summersault.

"Carlos Alvarez," the man offered. He held out his left hand, since Jake's right one was supporting Beth.

"Oh! Right. Hi," was Jake's stumbling reply, while clumsily accepting the slightly awkward left-handed shake. "Jake Jensen. Beth's uncle."

Beth might already have made that abundantly clear with her exclamation, but Jake couldn't help hoping that Mr. Alvarez would follow suit and reveal himself to be the boys' uncle rather than father.

When he didn't, Jake felt a stab of disappointment.

"Nice to meet you." Mr. Alvarez smiled, which _still_ made Jake's heart race, just a tiny bit.

Beth gave a little wave to say hello, and as soon as Jake let go of Mr. Alvarez's hand he caught Beth's instead, in an attempt to ground himself. Her fingers were so small and warm, curling around two of his and holding on, as if she knew that Jake needed the support.

Mr. Alvarez looked down at the two boys who had come to stand next to him, one on each side. The one in the purple shirt was busy trying to pull a skull-shaped ring from his dad's hand, but Mr. Alvarez barely seemed to react.

"This is—"

"Emmanuel!" the boy with the green shirt shouted excitedly. His twin wasn't late to jump in, momentarily forsaking his attempts to steal the ring.

"And Alexander!"

Jake grinned at the boys.

"Nice to meet you," Jake replied. It was far easier to focus his attention on the kids, rather than Mr. Alvarez. The boys were safe territory, and a good reminder why Jake should keep his desires to himself.

Whatever small amount of hope he had that Mr. Alvarez might have been a single dad — meaning someone Jake could flirt with without risking his eternal soul — was dashed when the boys asked where mom was. It was in the same peculiar mix of Spanish and English as before, but Jake got the gist of it.

Mr. Alvarez's answer was easier to understand, mostly because he stuck to one language. Jake wasn't exceptionally good at Spanish, but even he could piece together that she was buying groceries for dinner.

Jake felt his heart sink and ruthlessly smothered the tingling excitement growing inside of him. This was clearly not the time, place, or the right person to be mooning over.

Still, Jake was polite even when he was uncomfortable, so he made sure to smile.

"Sounds like you have your hands full, and we should get going," Jake said cheerfully.

Mr. Alvarez looked up, his expression showing mild surprise, as if he hadn't expected the conversation to end so soon. Jake ignored it. Beth was getting restless anyway, twisting slightly in his arms, and it was better to head home to Jess' apartment before she started getting cranky.

When Jake looked at her Beth was grinning brilliantly at him, always happy to be the center of his attention. Jake had to fight an urge to squish her against his chest from overwhelming fondness.

She was one person he knew would never disappoint him.

"You ready to go, sweetie?" he asked, more as a formality. Beth nodded before diving in for a hug, her arms wrapped around Jake's throat. He almost choked when she squeezed a little too hard, but still managed to smile at Mr. Alvarez. "Nice meeting you, Mr. Alvarez. Emmanuel. Alexander."

He gave all three of them polite nods — which made the boys giggle — but Mr. Alvarez was still looking confused. Or maybe Jake was just imagining things. Yeah, that had to be it.

Jake valiantly curbed his urge to ask for Mr. Alvarez's phone number, and smiled before turning to leave. He didn't miss the dirty looks the two gossiping moms shot him, but he since wasn't entirely sure why they did, he chose to ignore them.

He focused on Beth instead, listening to her enthusiastic retelling of her day, and adamantly refused to linger on Mr. Alvarez's smile, or how warm his hand had been, or the way he moved — all fluent, effortless grace. Jake wasn't thinking about that _at all_.

Or so he told himself.

 

* * *

 

Two days later Jake was once again tasked with picking Beth up from her preschool. It was something he did gladly, since he was only visiting for two more weeks and embraced every opportunity he got to spend in his niece's company.

Jake had a fleeting thought of what it would be like if he met Mr. Alvarez again, but promptly pushed it aside. That was not a road he should be going down.

He was a lot more prepared this time, though. Meaning that when Mr. Alvarez eventually arrived to pick up his sons Jake's smile came without a blush, and his nod was polite but not too familiar.

Jake was helping Beth put on her shoes and took that as a reason not to engage in conversation. It said quite a lot that Jake was willing to forgo an opportunity to talk — especially with someone he found so incredibly attractive. It was just that Mr. Alvarez was firmly off limits and Jake knew that he wasn't nearly disciplined enough to keep his interest to himself, if he had to talk to the man. So avoiding him entirely seemed like the best solution.

If only Mr. Alvarez had been on the same page.

Jake saw Mr. Alvarez bypass all the other parents — some who were definitely trying to catch his attention — in favor of Jake. Which was incredibly flattering, and on any other day Jake would have performed a little victory dance to have caught the attention of someone he was interested in. Now though, he mostly felt a complicated mix of excitement and dread.

He was going to fuck this up somehow. He knew he would.

" _Hola_ , Mr. Carlos!" Beth piped up, as soon as Mr. Alvarez came close enough that he caught her somewhat fleeting attention. She was swinging her leg — the one Jake wasn't holding to put on her shoe — in a wide arch, smiling brightly in a way that could melt even the toughest of hearts.

She was being very unhelpful in Jake's attempts not to interact with Mr. Alvarez, in other words.

" _Hola, chica_ ," was the fond, amused reply.

Jake wondered how on earth he was supposed to keep a distance from the man when he sounded like _that_ when addressing Jake's niece. It would have been so much easier if Mr. Alvarez had been an asshole, but of course he wasn't. He seemed to genuinely like kids, all kind and friendly, while simultaneously possessing a smile that made Jake's pulse race and lit a fire in his gut.

It was as if Mr. Alvarez was the perfect combination of manners, thoughtfulness, and sensuality — possibly bred in a lab somewhere, to be the best he could be. It was _so unfair_.

"Mr. Alvarez," Jake greeted, offering the man a quick smile over his shoulder. Beth's shoes were suddenly incredibly fascinating and maybe Jake was being more careful than strictly necessary, simply because it gave him a reason not to look at Mr. Alvarez.

"Carlos is fine."

Jake swallowed, viciously smothering his excitement. Mr. Alvarez was just trying to be polite — nothing more. Jake was imagining the warm, smooth quality to his voice, which in most other situations could have been mistaken for flirtatious.

"Carlos, then," Jake pretended to agree, ignoring how breathless he sounded.

Beth suddenly decided that her shoes were done and jumped down from the tiny stool she had been sitting on, completely ruining Jake's cover. He was beginning to think she was doing it on purpose.

When she raced past him to fetch her sweater he didn't have much choice but to straighten and turn to face Mr. Alvarez. Jake was trying to keep his distance, but he could feel himself blushing slightly under Mr. Alvarez's gaze.

It made him incredibly nervous and fidgety to be given attention when he wasn't consciously seeking it out. That was so rare that he didn't know how to react. He couldn't figure out why this man — this gorgeous, amazing man — would somehow be so aware of Jake, even when he wasn't trying to be noticed.

Jake wanted to smack his own forehead when he realized he'd been standing there, tugging at the hem of his own t-shirt like an insecure five-year-old. He hastily cleared his throat and decided to stick to a topic that was at least relatively safe, pretending not to notice the amused smile on Mr. Alvarez's lips.

"I thought Beth's fascination for Spanish came mostly because of Dora, but I'm going to go ahead and blame some of it on you and the twins from now on." The words may have been a bit more familiar than Jake had intended, but they made do.

Mr. Alvarez grinned, and if anything he looked proud. Jake's mouth went a little dry.

"Beth is a lovely girl."

"She is, yeah," Jake replied, gaze automatically straying to where his niece was talking animatedly with another girl. It made Jake's heart clench to recognize some of himself in her wide gestures.

His gaze travelled back to Mr. Alvarez, trying to think of something nice to say about his sons in return — it only seemed polite. But Jake had only met them once before and his first impression was 'energetic'. Not that Jake saw that as a bad thing, but he didn't want to come off as insincere either.

He was saved from having to say anything when a woman slid in next to them, a bright, friendly smile on her face. It didn't hide her obvious purpose, though, seen on how she angled herself more towards Mr. Alvarez and only gave Jake a dismissive glance.

Jake knew exactly what that meant and took a subtle step back.

"Hi, Carlos," she said, voice almost sickeningly sweet. Jake couldn't help wondering if she was going to flip her hair over her shoulder next. "How is Isabel doing?"

Mr. Alvarez's displeased frown was so small that Jake seemed to be the only one who noticed. And Jake couldn't blame the man, since it had to be annoying to be so obviously flirted with — at your kids' preschool, no less.

Jake swallowed and vowed never to do that. He didn't want to be the reason for Mr. Alvarez's discomfort.

"Isabel is fine," was the somewhat measured reply. Jake assumed that Isabel was Mr. Alvarez's wife. Then again, he saw no wedding ring so maybe they weren't married yet.

"How far along is she now?" the woman asked, not quite moving into Mr. Alvarez's personal space, but certainly signaling that she wanted to.

Jake balked. The conversation was beginning to make him extremely uncomfortable — and he wasn't even a part of it. Not that he _want_ to be, either.

"Eight months." Mr. Alvarez sounded like he was trying not to grit his teeth in frustration. He shot Jake a suffering look, but Jake had no idea how to respond.

He was too busy feeling his stomach drop out from the knowledge that Mr. Alvarez had a pregnant significant other waiting at home. Jake already knew that his chances were below zero, but that really hit it home.

He almost felt nauseous.

A quick glance in Beth's direction offered him a chance to escape the increasingly awkward conversation, where a woman was obviously trying to flirt with a man while discussing his pregnant partner. Jake's head was spinning with how incredibly fucked up that was.

"I'm sorry, but I gotta go," Jake pushed in, cutting off whatever the woman was about to say and completely ignoring the glare that earned him. "I promised to take Beth out for ice cream." His smile was apologetic, if a bit strained. "Have a good day, Mr. Alvarez. Ma'am."

He nodded to them both before fleeing the scene, heart hammering in his chest. Jake felt bad for Mr. Alvarez, he really did, and definitely noticed the disappointed — almost urgent — look Mr. Alvarez threw after him. But there was little Jake could do to stop the woman from flirting, so he settled for being happy to get out of there instead.

And Beth absolutely loved him for stuffing her full of ice cream.

Jess was less pleased when she came home from work to find them snoring on the couch, toys scattered all over the apartment from the resulting sugar high. They were put on cleaning duty while she made dinner.

Despite how much he grumbled and whined — more so than Beth, actually — Jake didn't mind it so much.

"Worth it," he whispered to Beth, who giggled and nodded in agreement.

And really, that was all that mattered to Jake.

 

* * *

 

Jake began to suspect that he had some kind of masochistic leaning when he kept agreeing to pick up Beth from her preschool. It was clearly a bad idea since the more Jake saw of Mr. Alvarez the more he liked him, but it was just so difficult to resist.

He was failing _spectacularly_ at resisting, as a matter of fact. One more day was all it took for him to stop trying to avoid conversation with Mr. Alvarez, both flattered and a little helpless in the face of his persistence.

So Jake became a regular at Beth's preschool during the week that followed.

First of all, he really did see it as a chance to spend extra time with Beth, but to meet and exchange a few words with Mr. Alvarez wasn't exactly a downside — except for when it was.

Sometimes Mr. Alvarez wasn't even there, because Jake arrived either before or after the man came to pick up his sons. Jake always had to remind himself not to feel disappointed those times. He wasn't actually supposed to be craving Mr. Alvarez's attention as much as he did, since nothing would ever come of it.

But during the occasions they did find themselves picking up kids at the same time, he didn't mind being a buffer between Mr. Alvarez and the flirting moms — of which there were quite a few.

They seemed more hesitant to approach when Jake was there, and he didn't miss how much more relaxed Mr. Alvarez looked when he was talking to Jake, as opposed to the other parents. Sure, Jake received a lot of disgruntled glares for his efforts, but it was well worth it for the relief his presence seemed to offer Mr. Alvarez.

The man was really quite wonderful, which didn't help Jake's infatuation _at all_.

Mr. Alvarez spoke sparingly, but whenever he did he seemed to put great weight on his words. Not to mention that he was all the more talkative in his body language. Or at least he was to Jake, who might be staring a little too excessively at Mr. Alvarez's face, registering and storing all the little nuances of his various expressions.

Jake tried not to make his interest too obvious, but he knew he had to be failing pretty badly considering how often he had to clear his throat and fight down a blush. He felt delightfully bashful and tingly whenever Mr. Alvarez chose his company over the others', incredibly flattered by the attention.

The only saving grace was that Mr. Alvarez didn't seem to notice, or if he did he was kind enough not to give Jake the same measured, annoyed looks he shot the others when they tried to talk to him. Jake wasn't _trying_ to flirt with the man — he was just helplessly attracted to him against better knowledge.

Mr. Alvarez kept smiling and talking to Jake in that way that made him feel so incredibly special and lucky, even if it didn't mean anything. It felt so nice to be noticed. It almost _hurt_ every time Mr. Alvarez laughed at one of Jake's corny jokes, or when he looked at Jake as if he was the most interesting person in the entire room — possibly the state.

Sometimes Jake wanted to cry from the unfairness of it all. That he could meet a man who not only put up with him, but actually sought him out, _willingly_ — but Jake wasn't allowed to pursue the attraction he felt. He wanted it so desperately that his heart clenched whenever he stepped through the doors at Beth's preschool.

But he still kept coming. He couldn't stay away, because Mr. Alvarez was kind and attentive and chose Jake over a room full of more well-adjusted adults.

It made Jake feel better than he thought possible.

Most of the time, Jake wasn't even sure what they talked about. Every now and then he asked about Isabel and the boys — who were indeed energetic and quite adorable, once Jake got to know them better — both because it seemed like the polite thing to do, and to remind himself to keep a distance. All other times Jake's enthusiasm got the better of him and he blurted out whatever random facts he was most interested in at the time.

Mr. Alvarez, amazingly, didn't seem to mind. And Jake had a hard time not looking like a lovestruck fool most hours of the day.

Jess noticed, of course. She didn't ask why Jake was bouncier and happier than usual, but she definitely noticed, giving him calculating looks as the days passed.

Jake was grateful that she never voiced her questions out loud, however, since he wasn't sure what to answer if she had actually decided to confront him about it. Saying that he was secretly falling for one of the dad's at Beth's preschool was a really, really bad idea. But it was, unfortunately, exactly what was happening.

So perhaps it was a good thing that Jake was only visiting. He had a little less than a week left before he was due to return home to his messy apartment. It was just a couple of towns over, sure, but still too far away for him to regularly pick Beth up from her preschool.

He only had a couple of days left to enjoy Mr. Alvarez's company and Jake decided that he could allow himself that much. He still wasn't going to pursue the man, but he was definitely going to treasure the time they spent together.

In five days it wouldn't really matter anyway.

 

* * *

 

Jake appreciated the comfortable status quo he and Mr. Alvarez had reached. They talked when both happened to pick up their respective kids at the same time; Mr. Alvarez being kind and friendly, while Jake did his best to counteract his blushing and silly smiles by adamantly not referring to Mr. Alvarez by his first name. He knew that was silly, but under the circumstances it was one of the few things he _could_ do to keep a polite distance between them.

Besides, Mr. Alvarez seemed to find Jake's persistence endearing, even if he sighed in exasperation more than once. He always sounded strangely fond, though, so Jake didn't mind.

Their interaction was easy and reassuring. Jake loved it.

So maybe it shouldn't have come as a surprise that the status quo was inevitably disrupted, four days before Jake was set to leave. It was, surprisingly, Jess who caused it, but Jake had to admit that he wasn't actually angry afterwards — for more than one reason.

That day Jess was waiting in the car while Jake went inside to fetch Beth. Since it was Jess' day off they had decided to take Beth to the park in an attempt to have her tire herself out. Jake was looking forward to the mini-excursion and picnic they had planned, smiling more than usual when he helped Beth get dressed, thanked the teachers, and herded Beth towards the awaiting car.

The door to the preschool had just closed behind them when Beth let out an excited chirp.

" _Hola_ , Mr. Carlos!"

Jake's gaze snapped up, maybe a bit too quickly to seem entirely casual. So what if the mere thought of Mr. Alvarez being there made Jake's heart jump? It was understandable by then.

Mr. Alvarez smiled at Beth and tipped his hat, while Jake tried not to let it show on his face just how much he wanted to kiss the man.

"We're going to the park!" Beth exclaimed excitedly, tugging on Jake's hand. "Before Uncle Jake leaves!"

The smile on Mr. Alvarez's face faltered somewhat, and when he looked up at Jake he seemed a little uncertain.

"You're leaving?" he asked, and Jake was pretty sure that he wasn't imagining the hint of disappointment.

Had Jake forgotten to mention that?

He swallowed and scratched his neck, feeling strangely guilty for some reason.

"Uh... yeah. I mean, I don't actually live here. I'm just visiting." Jake wasn't sure how he could have missed to tell Mr. Alvarez that, considering how much they had spoken these past couple of days. But odds were that he hadn't said anything because he kind of wanted to forget about it himself.

"Oh." Now Mr. Alvarez definitely looked disappointed, which made Jake feel another tug of guilt.

"But hey," Jake said quickly, trying for a cheerful smile, "it's not like I won't come back."

Was it too bold of him to assume that Mr. Alvarez wanted to see him again? They were friends by then, right?

Something delighted and warm fluttered to life in Jake's chest when Mr. Alvarez smiled back. It wasn't quite as wide as before, but there was a fondness in his eyes that made Jake's breath catch, just a little.

Without really meaning to Jake ended up just standing there, staring at Mr. Alvarez, trying to commit his face to memory.

A loud honk made Jake jump in surprise, and his gaze flickered to Jess' car. He couldn't see her face, but he assumed she was telling him to hurry up. Beth was obviously getting bored, trying to climb Jake like a jungle gym, pulling herself up by her grip on his hand and her tiny legs wrapped around his knee.

Jake hadn't even noticed.

He carefully extracted Beth and settled her on his hip instead, giving Mr. Alvarez an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, we better get going." Jake knew that his words sounded more squeaky than usual, mostly from embarrassment. "But maybe I'll see you tomorrow?"

It sounded so incredibly corny but Mr. Alvarez didn't seem to mind. He nodded and gave Jake's arm a pat instead. The touch was just a soft brush against Jake's skin but he still had to fight back a shiver. Even as Mr. Alvarez moved towards the entrance to the preschool his fingertips were close enough that Jake could feel them whisper against his skin.

With some effort Jake was able to swallow down the unwanted butterflies suddenly bursting to life in his stomach.

Mr. Alvarez offered one last smile before he disappeared from view. Jake stood frozen on the spot, like a proper fool, until Beth tugged his beard hard enough to make him yelp.

"Park!" she demanded, with all the indignation a four-year-old could muster.

Jake took a deep breath and gave her a slightly trembling smile.

"Of course, sweetheart."

Jake heart was still racing when he settled Beth into her car seat. He made sure to give her a kiss on the cheek — which made her giggle — before getting into the passenger seat next to his sister.

The look Jess gave him was downright terrifying.

" _What_?" he asked with a hint of defiance. She looked like she wanted to chastise him for something, but he hadn't taken _that_ long.

Jess pursed her lips but didn't say anything. Instead she pulled away from the curb, glancing in the rearview mirror as if to check that they had left the preschool behind.

"Beth, sweetie, close your eyes and cover your ears, okay?" Jess said all of a sudden. Jake wasn't sure if he was supposed to be more surprised by the instructions or the fact that Beth followed them without a complaint.

The next second he became more concerned with flinching out of the way of Jess' fist as it thumped against his shoulder.

"OW! What was that for?" he hissed, covering his shoulder with his hand.

"Is that why you've been floating on cloud nine?" she asked, eyes on the road but tone just a tiny bit menacing. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you _what_?" Jake was honestly confused. He had no idea what she was talking about.

"That you have apparently landed yourself the most eligible bachelor in the state."

Jake frowned, lowering his hand. He could hear Beth humming to herself in the backseat, blissfully unaware of what her mother and uncle were talking about — thank God.

"I did what now? Who? When?" Jake was beginning to confuse himself. "What?"

Jess shot him a glance, frowning slightly.

"Carlos," she replied, as if that was somehow supposed to be obvious. "I've never actually seen him talk to anyone on his own initiative before, let alone touch them."

It was difficult for Jake's brain to catch up, but he gave it a valiant try.

"Carlos? What does he have to do with—" Jake fell silent, mind whirring. He felt it was understandable if his voice took on a particularly high-pitched quality when he picked up again. " _Bachelor_?"

Jess' raised eyebrow seemed to suggest that Jake was being rather thick at the moment.

"Yeah, Carlos. You know, the one who makes pretty much all the moms swoon as soon as he steps inside a room?"

"But..." Jake faltered, turning towards Jess. "He's not... one of the dads?"

Jess shook her head, smoothly executing a turn despite being in the middle of a conversation with her bewildered brother.

"He's Emmanuel and Alexander's uncle, helping out with the kids since Isabel — that's his big sister — is pregnant and her husband is working out of town at the moment." She shot him an amused look. "Everyone knows that."

"I didn't know that!" Jake spluttered. "No one told me!"

Jess laughed at the insulted look on Jake's face, and Jake had to remember exactly why it would be undignified to pout.

To be honest, he felt pretty bad now for having thought that the women at the preschool were amoral enough to openly flirt with a man they knew was taken. Turned out Mr. Alvarez had been single all along, and Jake couldn't begrudge anyone trying to flirt with the man.

Heck, even Jake would have, if he had known.

Then another thought struck him.

"Wait. Does that..." Jake's eyes widened, looking almost pleadingly at his sister. "Does that mean he's been _flirting with me_?"

Mr. Alvarez had always seemed to smile more at Jake than any of the others, and went out of his way to talk to him. He listened and made Jake feel important, always standing close and looking attentive and interested.

Jess took pity on him, smiling fondly.

"I'd say so, yeah. He looked just about ready to eat you, if you ask me."

Jake groaned and tried to deny that his sister's words lit a spark of anticipation in his gut. He slumped back in his seat, hands covering his face.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he mumbled miserably, his words muffled against his palms.

He felt Jess pat his arm, comforting but also slightly patronizing.

"There, there, sweetheart, you still have three days left. That's plenty of time to let him know you're just as interested as he is."

She was right but Jake still groaned, feeling both embarrassed and hopeful at the same time. It was an interesting combination.

"I hate you," he muttered, not the least bit surprised to hear Jess laugh.

"No, you don't."

And no, he really didn't.

 

* * *

 

Jake was nervous when he showed up at Beth's preschool the next day, but it was a good kind of nervous. Jess had rolled her eyes at him before she left for work that morning, obviously finding his wide, loopy smiles to be sickeningly sweet, but Jake didn't care.

His heart was beating excitedly in his chest and he might be bouncing just a little, hoping now, more than ever, that Mr. Alvarez — Carlos — would be there.

He wasn't disappointed, and had to fight down an urge to grin like a madman when he caught Carlos' gaze. Jake felt a slight tug of apprehension, mixed in with the anticipation.

"Hi, Carlos." Jake didn't usually call him that and it was obvious that Carlos noticed, tilting his head to the side in curiosity. There was a spark of delight in his eyes, which Jake had always interpreted as simple pleasure at seeing Jake — now he was pretty certain that it meant a whole lot more.

Jake threw a quick glance at Beth to confirm that she wasn't quite ready to go yet — which seemed to apply to Carlos' nephews as well — and decided that now was as good a time as any.

Carlos was looking patiently at him, maybe a tiny bit expectant, which didn't help Jake's nerves _at all_.

"I... uh..." This was going so well. Jake cleared his throat and tried again, not quite confident enough to meet Carlos' eyes. "I was wondering if you might want to... uh, meet up? Somewhere that isn't here." Jake gestured towards the room. "I mean, as in, like..."

"A date?" Carlos finished, amusement evident in his voice.

Jake nodded, daring to glance up at Carlos' smiling face. He looked like he thought Jake was the most adorable being on the entire planet. That was an opinion that would probably change as soon as he _really_ got to know Jake, but for now he decided to feel flattered.

Carlos stepped closer, and for the first time Jake realized that he had been doing that more and more these past couple of days, but Jake had always written it off as his own wishful thinking.

At some point he might explain to Carlos why he took such a long time to respond to all the flirting, but it wasn't one of his current priorities. He was too busy staring at Carlos' face, feeling his heart thunder in his chest and hands tremble from excitement.

"I would like that," Carlos replied, his voice smooth and rolling in a way that made Jake swallow.

"Good," he squeaked unattractively.

Jake wanted to kiss Carlos so bad but knew better than to do so in front of a bunch of preschoolers. He still felt a delighted tingle when Carlos' hand brushed against his. Jake's gaze remained locked with Carlos' while he gently, reverently, laced their fingers together.

The touch was so simple but sent a sizzle of lightning down his spine all the same.

"Good," he mumbled again, as if to remind himself that this was actually happening. This gorgeous, amazing, and incredibly kind man had actually agreed to go on a date with _Jake_ , of all people.

It was too good to be true, but Jake decided that he quite liked being hopelessly optimistic.

Carlos only smiled and gave Jake's hand a reassuring squeeze.  


 

**Author's Note:**

> Carlos' POV of this story would basically be him going "I want one" at the first sight of JJ's bashful, blushing face. He's a very simple man, sometimes. Also, when I think about it, I might have written this fic just to have that scene with JJ and Jess in the car...
> 
> As always [CarpeDentum](http://archiveofourown.org/users/CarpeDentum) did the betaing, _but_ I might have messed things up since then, because I suck. You can find the original post on Tumblr [HERE](http://amethystinawrites.tumblr.com/post/119456164752/mr-carlos).


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